The Sun. — London, England, 1818-04-17 00:00:00

PARLIA MENT. 1.1 USE OF LORDS, TH,UHSDAY, AWOL 16. Mr. MAITLAND presented an acconnt ten lions An.l Allowances Oarited by the Bait India Company since the last Account. Ordered to lie upon the Table. The Marquis of CpOLbIaNDELEY reported (as was understood) tlWansitier of the Prince Regent to the Address voted yesterday. for an Aicount of the Pensions and Allowances of the - Royal-Dukes, that his Royal Highnets would give directions ac cordingly. Several local and private Bills were brought up front the House of Com Mons by Sir J. Graham, Mr. Poalett, Mr. Wodebouse, Mr. Fane, and other Members, and read a first time.—Adjourned till to-morrow (this day). HOUSE OF COMMONS. Mr. Dtvttstt3 presented au Account of the Imports and Ex ports of the United Kingdom, in ISIO and , lBl7.—Ordered to Ile 44n the,table, and to be printed. Mr. MAITLAND presented Papers front the India House, relative to the Resolutions of the Directors as to grant iror Pensions.—Ordered to lie on the table, and to be printed. SALT TAX. Sir' WM. CURTIS presented a Petition from the risher rneit of timehouse, against the Salt Duty.—Read, and ord,red to be referred to the Committee on the Salt Laws. fir JAMES SHAW presented A similiar Petition from the Owners of Fishing Vesstis in Greenwich, which was dis pos►ed of in the s..the. Way. , Mr. CA WHAM', as Chairman of the Committee to which these Petitions *were referred, expressed . a wish that re spectable bodies of such as these Petitioners, would send op one of their number to give information to the Committee. COTTON MANUFACTORIES. Mr. W. PEEL presented a Petition from certain Cotton Spinners, and others, of the City of Manchester, in farourof the Bill for abridging the hours of labour in Cotton Manu, factories. • On the enteoion that the Petition be brought up, Mr. HORN9Y said, that he did not rise to oppose this Petition, but to express his opinion, that if the Bill in favour of which this Petition was presented, Should pass the House, it would occasion much mischief to operative manufacturers, /natty of whom, it was well known, could, be labouring the greatest number of hours that was possible, hardly earn the means of subsistence. His own opinion al to-the had Bill been c-ety much eltan , zed, from having an opportunity of ma minim; into the interior arrangements of manufactories. At all event: Ire hoped the House won d take care to obtain every information on a subject of such vast importance, before it decided upon it. • _ _ The Petition was then read, and ordered tulle on the table. Mr. GRATTAN presented a Petition, signed by many householders of Dublin, praying for the repeal of the Window Tax.—Read, and ordered to lie on the table-. . Mr.. GHAT PAN presented a similar Petition, from the Carpenters, &c. of the City of Dublin, which was also read. and ordered to lie on the table. Mr. Alderman ATKINS presented a Petition from Bark ing,. in Essex, against the Salt Duty.-11.tad, and ordered to be referred to the Committee. Mr. 13F.NNtT presentvd a Petition from 131ackhurn, in Lancashire, in favour of the Bill for abridging the hours of labour in Cotton Manufactories.—Read, and ordered to lie on the table. OFFICERS' WIDOWS' PENSIONS. Mr. LYTTLETON postponed, till Tuesday next. his mo tion relative to tie Order lately issued on the subject of Pen sions to the Widows of ;Mimi. In the meantime, he moved that there be laid before the House an accoont of the number of Officers' Widows (,tis►inguishin4 the names and ranks of their huSbauds), who received pensions, and at what Cates, front December 181 N to December IRI7, and some other pa pers-relative to the same subject, including a copy of the war- Tantin question. After a few words from Mr. Smjeant ONSLOW, the mo tion was agreed to, and the papers ordered. . • The Costs of Sieit Biii was read a second time,.and ordered to be committed to-morrow. Me. PEEL presented Papers relative to the Commissariat Department, the emboilied and various of the other public departments in Ireluud.—Ordered_to lie ou the table, 4hd to he printed. The Committee on the Education of the Poor I 111 was post- Porten till monqay. PRINCESS ELIZABETH'S MARRIAGE. Lord JOHN THYNNE appeared%rtt the Bar, and infOrrned the House, that her Majesty had been waited upon with the Address of the House to her Majesty, on the occasion of the Nuptials of her Royal Highness the Princess Elizabeth and the Prince of Hesse HOmboarg? to which her Majesty returned a gracious answer. Lord MARCH appeared at the Bar, and acquainted the House that her Royal Highness the Princess Elizabeth, and tho Prince of Hesse Houshourg, had been waited upon by the Members appointed to present the Congratulatory Address of the House, to which they returned a gracious answer. EXTENTS IN AID. Mr. W. SMITH, adve;tiniz to the proceedings of the Com mittee of last year on Extents in Aid, observed that much good had resulted from the measure, adopted by the House on that subject Within the last few years, there had been a wonderful diminution iu the number of Extents issued. rle now moved. that the various documents which had hren laid before the Committee, be returned to the respective esta blilihments which had sopplied them.—Ordered. Mr. J. P. GRANT obt,ined leave to hying in a Bill to re galate the payment of IVor'sinews' Wages, in the Coin of the Realm. The Bill was brooght in, read a Get time, and- or dered to read a second time. ALIEN ACT. Mr, LXMBTON, seeing; Ihr, Noble Lord opposite in his place, wished to know whether that Noble Lord would think it his duty to continue the Abets Act beyond the present year ? Lord CASTLEREAGH replied, that be intended on an early day tnsubmit to the House a motion for the continu ance of the Act alluded to. COMMUNICATION FROM THE DUKE OF CLARENCE. Lord CASTiiittEAGH rose and said, that in Mov ing 'the Order of the Day for the House again re solving itself - into a Costriiiiitee on . the Message of the Prince Regnt, he felt that it would he desir able for him to state the object to Mile}, he wish ed to call the attention of the House. Ilefive the Report of the Committee of last night vas broti . ght tip, be wished to state to the House, that at t e r what had Raised yesterday—after the vote on the proposition which he had felt it hi e s duty to sob tbit to the Committee, a proposition founded on a p4tient and minute investigation by those who were best qualified to form a correct judgMent on such a spbject, he naturally felt, that lie should have neglected to : perform his.duty if 'he had not waited on his Royal Highness the Duke of Cla rence, to apprise his Royal Highness of the view which the House took of the subject. It would not be doing justice to the House if he did not 'state that his Royal Highness was not, in coming to the resolution which be had -formed, actuated by any feeling of disrespect towards the House.— But after- a- full consideration of the subject, his Royal Highnest had instructed him to submit to the HouSe the view which his Royal Highness `vas disposed ,to take of the opinion of die House; f or h e must consider the opinion of the Committee 'to be the _opinion o/ the - House.' His Royal highness felt, that as the acceptance of any pro vis'oti by the House mnst he necessarily accompa v au inc!ease Of tstabfis!Phentou his part, o f c‘roWishirrent could not he io n wftir!! the House Yi ..? okit 0 110 S n -tents wilich it must be the very end 'and ob ject of such provisions to 'obviate. Under all these circumstances (continued s the Noble Lord), and With these feelings and no other, his Royal Highness has authorized me to declare, that with much deference to the judgment of, the' House, as testified by the vote of last night, his Royal High ness feels himself obliged to decline self .of the pr4ision - iittetided tor hint by Nis' House.—(This attimation was received withv loud cries of Hear, hear, hear ! froth all parts of the House.)---He (Lord C. thought it would be con venient for the House to have this communica tion delivered at the present stage of the business, as it would assist the House in disposing of the Report ; for he must add, that is was not intend ed to take any additional step in it, as the - object for which it was proposed was now to be consi dered'as abandoned.—(Hear, bear, hear !)—He should now, therefore, - propose to proceed - to the Order of the Day for the Committee on the Mes sage. Here there was a loud call front the Opposition to proceed to the Report. Lord CASTLEREAGH said, he meant now to pro pose the Committee. The Order of the Day for the Committee out the Pi ince Regent's Message having been read, on the motion (It Lord CASTLEREAGH, the House resolved itself into the Committie. ;PROVISION FOIL THE DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE. When the Chairman had read the Message, Lord CASTLEREAGH said, that the part of the Message to which he wished to call the atten tion of the Committee was that which related to the Marriage of his Royal Highness the Doke of Cambridge. After the attention which the H o use had given to his detailed observations on the sub ject of a provision fur this illosttions Member of the Royal-Family, he oid not think it necessary now to occupy the time of the House by a repeti tion of them. He would merely move the Reso lution for the Giant, reserving to himself. the right of giving any explanation or statement which might be necessary. He then moved, " That it is the opinion of this Committee that his Majes ty be enabled to grant an additional yearly sum out of the Consolidated Fund of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, not exceeding the sum of ON., to make a suit able,prusision for his Iloyalßighness the Dupe of Cambridge on his marriage." Mr. BROUGHAM said, he could not help won dering at the way in which the grant of this sum was proposeth' It was done as if it were a mere matter of course. Because the House had last night voted that the provision for the Bake of Clarence should be 60001. it seemed to be con .sidered a matter of course now to vote a provi sion to a similar ammotint to any Prince or every Prince who might chose to enter into the married stAte. If no other Member of . the House would do so, be felt it his duty, , as a representative of the people . of England—as one of the guardians of the public purse, to Oppose the present motion. His objectionao it was this—that the proposals for these provisions were WA made to the House separately, and one by one, as, the occasion on which they were called for arose, each of them to be justified on its own merits ; but they were brought forward in 4 lump,-and it was expectedlhat the House should in this way give to . any Prince, or to all the . Princes who chose to contract marriages, a large and splendid increase to the provision already made for them. No man lamented more titan himself the great afflictions—the irreparable loss which the nation had sustained, in the interruptiou of the direct line of succession to the Throne. It was a ca lamity of such a nature, .that the' lapse of time, instead of wearing away the impression whiCh it had made, only made it sink more deeply . into the mind. He was quite sure, that if any thing'could make the grief of the country for . this calamity more poignant, it would be the proceedings which had been lately adopted in the general and wholesale provision which was proposed, with the view' of supplying the irremediable loss which the nation had sustained. It was always unplea sant in a Parliamentary discussion to be obliged to refer to the personal character of any individual. But when that individual happened -to be placed an exalted situation, is .was so infinitely more unpleasant, that the necessity would, if possible, be shunned by every Member of the house. He should therefore pass over ail that part of tuesttbject as swiftly as he might—and with this remark, that. the applications which had been made to the House, especially on behalf of the Duke of Cla rence and' the Duke of Cumberland, would more deeply fix in the mind of every man the veneration and attachment which . every one felt for that il lustrious Personage now no more. It was no doubt highly expedient that facilities should be afforded, by. proper provisions, for continuing the succession in the House at present on the Throne, the direct line of that succession having been un happily interrupted. .And if it could he made out that a marriage could not take place without a provision for that purpose being made by, the House, then he would agree to vote such a pre vision ; but lie would make it the lowest possible sum which would be sufficient to give facility to the marriage. He was sure the. House and the country would go along with him in this. All would agree that it was expedient to have a suc cessor to the Throne from some one of the branches ofsthe Royal Family. If, therefore, the Noble Lord would assure the House, that no other • branch of that Family, except the youngest, was likely to contract a marriage, and that the mar riage could not take place without a provision by the House, then he would agree to vote a provi sion 'fur that branch of the Family. But why did the Noble Lord on this occasion pass at once to the youngest branch ? There was an illustrious Duke (the Duke of Kent) whose name was men tioned in the debate of last night, who stood its circumstances peculiarly favourable with a view to a provision of this kind. Not only was that Royal Duke distinguished' by the virtues of his private character, but by Ilia measures which. he had adopted to relieve himself .from his incum brances. Those measures bad been lost night men tioned, otherwise he would not have thus went ioned them. Certainly, they. never could be mentioned without the highest credit. to his Royal'llighttess, and they %Jell deserved the consideration of the The Duke of Clarence had this night infoimed the House, With a respectful defereuce to the vote of the House, 'which could not be too much praised, that be would not avail himself of , • the provision, intended by the House; and that . he would decline. the measure s;/Itieli *ás the occa sion of calling•for the provision. Indeed it had been slated last slight by a Right ,Hon. GeniLe man (111,r. Canning), tisk io the marriage Aids his -Royal:Higliness had iilteneed.th 'contrlict, he had made a great sacrifice of private reeling to public duty. Trutt repugnance, it now seemed, his Royal Highness had not to get offer. Such being the determination ot the Duke of Clarence, the question then 'came to be, whether the next .Branch- of the Royal Family entertained any thoughts of contracting a marriage. From part' of whet fell from the Noble Lord last night , it might be inferred that the illustrious Duke next to the Duke of Clarence did entertain some such thoughts. if so, why did the Noble Lord now pass at once to the youngest branch of the Family ? The- -- meaning of the proposi tion now before the Committee he took to be, that , it . was to be considered that any one of the younger branches of the Royal Family who might•be disposed to marry shindd . , be considered entitled to a provision of 60001 Next to the Duke of Kent came the Duke of Comberland, of whom Lie would desire to say nothing. Next to itim.again w.as t•he Duke of Sussex, who the: Duke of Cambridge, who, if possible, 'was, by his character end conduct, m a r e en titled to-the conqideratioo :of the House than the Duke of Kent, fia he bed ti en up nearly the whole of hisdncome to discharge his incutmbrau ces. In.talkieg of this Illuttrious Duke, it was fair that the House should recollect that be had not any of the advantages in point of income which were enjoyed by, all the other Members of the Royal Family. . Royal Highness was not a militery Wan, amid had no regiment ;—whereas the Duke ot Kent had the Government of Gibraltar, besides a regauenr; the Dike of Cambridge, too, had a regiment, betides his' being Comarander iii Hat:sot/cr. The Duke of Sossex, too, had receiv ed his allowance, first of 12,0001. a year, and afterwards of .18,0001 - . a year, later in lite than the Duke of Cambridge, and had never the advan tage which the latter had, of living previously in a Palace atsd at a public table. All these eircem stamces must be considered, in order to guide the judgment of the House through the mazes in which the question teas involved. Much pra?se, indeed, was due_ to the Duke of Sussex, on account of what he bad done ; and viewieg private economy not only as a merit, but as a virtue,—as the pa rent of many virtues,.and the preventative of Many vices,—that praise would certainly not be with held. The circumstances of the Duke of Cam bridge made it much easier for him to avoid con tracting debts ; - .for he had his provision at an earlier age than his brothers, and had - other sources of income to.a large amount. 'flue income which he derived from Hanover was 60001. a year,over and above a country residence, a - shooting seat, the. free.use.'of his Majesty's plate, sand the use also of •his Majesty's stables.- He did not now mention table expenses, for be understood the Noble Lord to have stated last night, that in esti matitighis income from Hanover at 60001., he in chided the emoluments derived Irons a free table. Thus had this Royal Prince enjoyed an esta blishment 'truly princely, at the public ex pence. In constrpience of this he bad an income of 18,0001, a year,-in fact, going on to accumulate. Indeed, if he was not mis-informed, he had been able to accumulate a large sons, which lie had now invested its the . public Fund:; in this country.. Let it not, therefore, be thought harsh a hen he ex pressed his decided Opinion that: the House ought not to be called.upon to vote 60001. to enable the Duke of Cambridge to marry. There wet e oily two grounds on which he conic! allow that the House ought to grant any provision for that purpose, namely, when the • marriage itself was desirable, and whets without a provision by the Hoese it could not take place. If the case of tiny Member of • the Royal Family was brought bef - Ure the House, who was able to marry without its assistance, it was their duty to refuse any provision. Ile therefore thought that all those who voted last night ag ainst the proposed provision of 10,000 1 . for theDake of Clarence must vote against the pr esent Motion. For how could those,wl; . voted against the 10,0001- last night—who had said that w - hemher the Duke of Clarence could or could Out 'marry with .a provi sion of 60001'. they did not know,-they only knew that More titan 60001. the House could not af ford—how could they consistently t'o'e a provi sion of 60001. to the Duke of Cambridge, who could marry without oily provision at all To vote a provision under such circumstances, would be neither more nor lesi than abisolutely to squan der the pUblic money, or,would be paying a . n ex pensive and idle cotnidiment to that illustrious Per Son.• If, indeed, the Noble Lord was prepar -ed to prove, that without the proposed grant his Royal Highness could not marry:, then the House must vote the - provision. Butt short of this proof, he was satisfied that no man who valued his. con sistency could refuse the proposal which he . was disposed to make—namely, that the Committee should meet this motion by a direct negative. — Supposing the provision to be necessary, be could not overlook that there were other funds from which it ought be supplied. He could not overlook 'the Windsor -Establishment, and the Establishments for the-Elder Brioches of time Royal Family. It must 'be suggested, that • when a provision of this kind was necessary, those Members of the Reyal Family who had larger incomes, ,or who by greater eco .nomy bad been enabled to accumulate large sums, should contribute, at least as far es they wete able, to furnish such a provislou. When he sug- Bested this to the House, he was sure it would be acknowledged that in the quartets to which he • alluded, there should be a fellow feeling for the distresses of the people, in which they had only partaken by. sympathy, 'the Members of the. Royal Family having been wisely exemp!ed from all share in the public burdens. It would - be ac knowledged that now when the storm mess hap- . piiy blown over, during which the Royal Family had beet., exposed to the same risk as the people, they ought to shOw their gratitude by applying to such purposes that whiCh the abundance of their supplies well enabled them to spare, for the be ' . . . .. .. t Refit r relief' o ofbtheri: lie did 11.: - A einsitici• III! mere vote of la4t night as of so much importanC e as the broad princit,le which hall influenced the, Muse. The question no* is, whether they sho al° . vote an iinneceisary expenditure of. 60001.—wbe" titter the people,Shotild be told-that out of a coi n : - pliMent to 'e Member of keAtoyal•Family ,- 7 e, cornplimv t ulle, am! 'utine6pary,—tbe people, to have thisail&ional litirthen ot 60001. ito" posed upon them'? --14. ye, it it were only .6d.:in! stead of 60001. being unnecessary; he should utake the same stand against it.—Let it not be told that this grant was opposed because they acted the pert, of clamourers for retreuchment (fur that eXpressia had been used to the people on a former oeca7 sion), because this vote Was opposed l'iY iliiiie,wil had paid millions without a murmur. He %O ak ' make no comparison as to the characters of arty of .the Members of the. Royal Family—the oolY • ha comparison was as Ito their means. To th i s I thought every one must 'agree.' Therefore : 60001. was voted to the Duke of Cambridge; 1"9 means being so great, how could the House re tose 60001. to the Doke of Cumberland ? NE' the reasons were stronger in favour 'of , tm- Duke of Cumberlautl. ' Of the .private . ci' 4 ; racier of the Duke of Cumberland he kq e ; nothing, and of his public character be lo g ja nothing of whiCh he, as a. public man, e 6l '.,,p' approve. •He knew him to have been a O rl i it) 'a political intrigue, which, as a pol itil a • individual, he could not but disapprove. Let il e ' Mttnber think that by voting for this measur ye t voted for the consolidation of the Throne. o • no man vote against his own opinion, and sigiii" i , what he knows to be the wishes of his Col welds, from a notion that he mi g heotherwise la l .. jere the Royall'amily. There was a- deep-ro ote g ( ) i fixed, immoveable, resolution 'iu the pc' l e ,i, England that they will have economy. F . "' r ' l ( reason.it was, that if there was any ime Pa rr „ e the cominct of the present Adatioi strat ion ni t ' 1 offensive than another to the country, it was that of an iniplovident and ilseless granting o f Ibe ~,f public money to the Princes of the Royal Fa"'",.l I Let the Members of the Royel.Femily_ love "'',:a `their high station required, but not more. l',' „ 3 ! been said by the greatest of our poets-1)01'3i, too heinight be called the greatest of our ei l - 0 , oians—that he pieferred a Republic to a 3 , tio' ! nareby, - if for no other ,reason than tbi' , , ~t i'' the trappings , of a Monarchy are enough " 00 up a Republic." Here be thought this gre ar " it dls was mistaken- For his own part, he pref"" 5 ' Monarchy, with all its trappings and expon c ; `',,; but on this condition. only, that these traPP'.7,,. were cut down to the lowest possible 1 .. -o tul ' rl I ,-,,, i ' , vii a question like the present, that matt %v.- I „/ i te. best do his duty, first. to the people= l -o'u ...., - iwere concerned in every part of the question/0o and next to the Family on the Throne, I ti tl so guide himself as to conciliate tittle ot a . • i who could there draw the line, and not' giv e ' t I farthing more. lld -t ' . l r e a 1 Lord CAtTLEREAGN said, lie felt ionise - , , te ~npon by the observations o f the Hon. ow l beal f t eo 1 Gentleman who had just sat down to 54Y a l a words, and he would compress what lie b m , bs. Isay in the shortest possible compass. N ot ";f l . , a . standing the provocations thrown out by the ' m a and Learned Geotlemao by the tone of evel Pi e ie , 1 of his,Speech, he would endeavolix. to 1,1,t.' 1.. retnalkS ill that temperate mahner which to rts ( `' r e eirable in every discussion, but especially ‘ O C I ., I the subject was strch as that now before the tl - ce ........ i mil tee. Before he applied himself to th": at i t i q of the lion. and Learned Gentlentati.3 sPe e(ll ' 00 could not avoid calling the attention a t he I - 0' o ; ' to that part of it flout which (if he had trot et(ilie clotted that part of his subject by saying tb ' i be. would not make ally invidious, comoarisou' 01 ,-. tween_the Members of the Royal Family ) , t ile b icle vious intention was to make his speech the "..000 of invidious reflections and invidious cornieaV.,,,, bet ween the members of the Royal fa n ,.. l ',, t ; f o' I (Hear, hear, beer !)—The tionco'irale and i' so tr! f I eel Gentleman set out with saying, that tb e o ll/ t 1 • b ath 0 iii/ I ject was one of great . delicacy ; hut he i co , tei 1 , gone through his first sentence, before be ')' ,ro' I insinuated-that one.of his objections to the , i e 01). posal was, that it obliged him to p 1 010 1" l f.-1" the characters of two members of the 1 10 700' Ind y: When the HotiourAle and Lett tie d Ileman professed to be a friend to the 1 1 ( 4- 1 C.) wily, as a Mttuber of Nardi sment, lie ( 1-4°11 0.01 was bound to believe him ; but he must 'aY',, al' it there, was any course calculated Bb ` s' l l ) 1 . others to inspire into the minds of the r e( si s , 'it feeling of disgust towart , fs th e Roy ii ni ni ,r at ' e was that which the Hon. and Learned Gent"' .. , ,ic bath pursued.—(Hear, hear !)—He would 1 1 :i o f to the House , to decide what could be 111 0 " b f t; the insinuoions of the Honourable Getilfr n .j l os' he would put it to them to say what 1" o ci' • trious Pet sonages in question must feel 1 0 0 3 an occasion. The lion. and Learned Gen't "Pe ll regretted that the Hou s e hrid not been e sl ' e e ' e ch a " to -dispose of the case of a provision P t. we vits . the Royal Dukes on the individual revetlt of each case. What was there t o :11 loth .; the House from deciding each case 0 0 Ir- et an' victual merits ? Was not each case dist' ll 'O ll ot" r - separate—the subject' of a separate ni 5 go t , t and separately discussed ? In short, it t ` i . y3 l ,a o l the fact, as had been lepreseirted by the " )9 c alle" ' Learned Gentleman, that the H005e,%" 5 m ar I . lpon to decide the cases in the lump. 14 % re ter ° ug or general vote bad been pioposed ; alce‘lie t all the objections on that ground were a t °" w al e missed. He could Dot conceive any thilig oc il, humiliating to the Illustrious Per sort s eolicegoysl or more derogatory to the dignity flue to t be 0 f lel Validly, and more painful to the 14 wise, t h is l e ail' . the exttaordinary principles of the 1-10110°""" i v' Learned Gentleman should- be aefed "r ih i n tb d C , cording to that principle, Mi en a marrl e- ra 9 0 1 Royal liamily happened to be desirable; !.'`) at ioe c:renu tt istaees, with a view to per Pet" 00 the succession in the reigning family;)' 0 0 4 ' ) course to be pursued would be to scar` pick out that Piince who would be ' s oil to marry on the lowest terms ; and Ow idle , ev e , principle any member of the fam.;sly, II ; o il , c lew or rem o te, provided he was lineally o•r o 10 11 ;evilly in the line of descent, : it tr'ill'ing t " o ft l ' I ! with a less' provision than :mother Inewbe f ~ ea ~ ,e a a e .,i f ei family nearer in point Of succession , the eh o of the rate, th e lownees Of ebe provision • 1 .‘ ,, 0; to would agree to accept, and not the propinqut 4 - Yq i\'